Doctors have long warned women about the risks associated with pregnancy and conception with advanced maternal age. Women 35 and older are more likely to experience complications during pregnancy and delivery. A new study suggests that paternal age may also factor into miscarriage rates for babies conceived via IVF.
Newsweek reported that researchers announced their findings at the 41st ESHRE Annual Meeting. According to a study conducted from 2019 to 2023, male partners older than 45 have a higher risk of miscarriage when conceiving via IVF with donor eggs. The research was based on 1,712 donor egg IVF cycles in Italy and Spain.
The study used immature eggs from women with an average age of 26 years and 1 month and frozen sperm from male partners. The average age of female IVF participants receiving the embryos was 43 years and 3 months. According to the study, miscarriage rates were 23.8% for couples with male partners older than 45. That number shrunk to 16.3% for couples with younger male partners, Newsweek reported.
“It was genuinely surprising to see how strongly paternal age affects miscarriage and live birth rates, even in oocyte donation programs,” Maria Cristina Guglielmo, lead author and embryologist at Eugin Italy, told the magazine.
The live birth rates also decreased with older male partners to 35.1% compared to 41% for those with male partners 45 and younger.
“This challenges the common perception that maternal factors are the primary drivers of reproductive success and highlights the need to pay more attention to paternal factors in fertility,” Guglielmo said.
Guglielmo added that although the evidence shows men older than 45 can conceive easily, there may be genetic factors that affect embryo development.
“All women know how the miscarriage is associated to mother age; however, it’s time to inform the couple about how the father age is also important, especially during the pregnancy, in order to evaluate a prenatal screening,” she explained to Newsweek. “Being well-informed and proactive can help couples make the best decisions for their family-building journey and improve their chances of achieving a successful and healthy live birth.”
